Breaching the Skyward Latch

A blast of brilliant light leaked through the gap above the landing, where a weathered steel door stood barred by a heavy push bar. I lunged from the fire hose reel, planting both hind talons flat against the cold metal door surface. With a booming snort, I threw my full body weight downward onto the horizontal bar. The mechanism yielded with a sharp metallic clunk, the latch retracted, and the heavy door pushed outward an inch. A roaring gale of open sky rushed through the opening, washing across my snout and wings. The summit is breached.